Author: Hannah Levine

How to Study Like a Pro

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Monday is the last day of classes and we all know what that means—finals time. Like any good little student, I’ve perfected my finals studying schedule. I’m a senior, so be warned. This method is not for everyone.

First, I look at everything I have to do. I write every assignment in my planner and make sure to include due dates and a realistic timeline of how long each final assignment will take me to do. Keep in mind the word “realistic” here. There’s nothing worse than pretending it’ll take you three hours to write a paper knowing full well it’ll take you more like six once you fall into that dark hole of the Internet.

Second, write down the dates and times of your final exams in your planner, on your phone calendar, on your hand, whatever works best for you to remember to be there. This is an important step as not taking your exam generally leads to a very poor grade in the class.

Third, and this is my favorite part of my finals study schedule, choose which television show to start unnecessarily binge watching until it becomes really late and semi-stressful to do your work. I usually choose a show that has been on my list for a while or is easy to finish so that once I’m done I won’t have any distractions from my schoolwork. Most of the time this even works.

This year I decided to focus on the Marvel Universe, so I took a dive into Hell’s Kitchen and followed around everyone’s favorite PI, Jessica Jones. The amount of stress it caused me to actually sit there and watch probably didn’t help relieve any of my finals anxiety, but it sure was a hell of a show, and I am in no way upset I spent 10 hours watching it. (See, 10 hours. Totally manageable.)

For those of you who don’t know, Jessica Jones is one of those Netflix original series that makes you glad Netflix started making television instead of just streaming it. It’s really that good. I loved the story. The characters, like almost all superheroes and super villains, are interesting and exciting, lovable and despicable. Krysten Ritter plays Jessica, a truly strong female lead that you can’t help but despise a little bit while you root for her. David Tennant (I know, Doctor Who fans rejoice) is an excellently evil purple-loving Kilgrave who makes you kind of sick to your stomach and at least a little sorry for the way humanity can sometimes act, even in fictional stories. Together, they make one of the best match ups I’ve ever seen in a good versus bad story, and I had the hardest time every time I had to shut my computer before it was over.

You may think, how does this help me pass my exams? Well, the TV watching really doesn’t. It just makes you take a break and relax a little bit at a particularly stressful time in the semester. So I admit it, there is some actual studying in my finals study schedule. Once I’ve finished binge watching my show, I actually get down to business and study it up until finals are over. Maybe I’m just lucky, but so far this schedule has worked well for me. I can’t actually suggest putting off all of your homework and studying until after you watch endless hours of television, but I can tell you that Jessica Jones is a great television show. If you haven’t started it yet, it just might be the perfect addition to your finals study schedule. Tell yourself you’ll use it as a break if you have to. Whatever you need to convince yourself Netflix is not the enemy, because it’s not. It’s just a method to slow down, that’s all.

To those of you who opened this to actually learn some good study methods, I’m sorry if this isn’t what you wanted to read. However, I really have done very well on my examinations and papers over the past three years, and I think taking some time for yourself is a really good thing. If you don’t want to watch Jessica Jones I understand. (Not really. It’s so good you really just should.) But please, do something to break up your studying so you don’t try to jam everything from the last semester into your brain all at once. Who knows, you might actually learn something that way, and even enjoy these last couple days of classes and exams.

The Truth About Stories

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This gif shows Disney's Belle slide on a book store ladder from one side of a bookshelf to another.

I never thought I’d like reading stories about other people’s lives. Fiction was fine, but reality seemed boring and uneventful. When I was younger, my mom read The Little House on the Prairie series to me, but that was about as close as I got to reading a book about a real person. It wasn’t until later that I realized the beauty of someone else’s story.

The first memoir I read on my own was written by a teacher I used to have. The book was called Signs of Life, and for a while everyone in my school was reading it. I remember getting calls from other students asking me what chapter I was on or whether or not I had finished yet. I attended readings with friends at the local Borders (*wipes tear away*). We talked about how impressive it was to know an author, to know a real person who had successfully published a book. I thought it was special to be let in on a story like that, but I assumed my real admiration for the book was due to the fact that I knew the author.

Then, another teacher of mine proved me wrong. He suggested that I read The Year of Magical Thinking and Bone Black: Memoirs of Girlhood. I was hesitant to take on a memoir written by someone I didn’t know, but two memoirs? Two stranger’s lives? That was downright scary. I didn’t care about those authors. I didn’t want to know their stories. What could have happened in their lives to warrant my attention? Well, after finishing both of those memoirs, I realized my answer. What could have happened in their lives? A lot. Why should I care about their stories? They’re great stories.

Since then, I’ve read many books about other people’s lives. I find myself going to the bookstore and perusing aisles I never thought I’d wander into. I still think it can be hard to be interested in a complete stranger’s life, but I take baby steps. I read books that contain an element of memoir, personal narrative, nonfiction, or autobiography. Sometimes it can be hard to know where these books fall, but if I’m not sure, I just try to read them and not to worry about it. Many books walk a fine line, but that doesn’t mean one is necessarily better than another.

So, some days I’ll pick up a book that can’t be defined very well. Other days I’ll try something that can. I’ve read David Sedaris’s Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim to experience a bit of his life. Currently, I’m reading Modern Romance, and its combination of social science, humor, and nonfiction makes it really accessible and fun to read. I read books by authors who, for whatever reason, I can pretend I know a little. I read Amy Poehler’s, Yes Please, because I had watched Parks and Recreation for years. I read one of my favorite YouTube star Tyler Oakley’s memoir, Binge, because I’d seen him online and it was cool he was from Michigan. These little connections helped me care more, but I’m realizing I don’t need them as much as I used to. Maybe not now, but soon I’ll feel confident enough to read I Am Malala, Unbroken, or some other critically acclaimed memoir or personal narrative that has been hovering at the top of my Goodreads list for months.

I’m excited, because I know one thing very important: everyone has a story.

Thanksgiving Poem

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Every year on Thanksgiving, my great aunt would read a poem her father read to her called The Turkey Gobbler. In honor of that tradition, here is a poem of all of the things I am grateful for (and you should be grateful for!) at The University of Michigan.

Thanksgiving day comes but once a year
And always it is filled with cheer
Unless of course we do forget
To say our thanks to the people we’ve met
So tell your family and tell your friends
How happy you are that your love never ends
Then look to the west and HAIL the Big House
Pizza House feta bread could please a Michigan mouse
Say thanks to the profs and all the GSIs
Shake your advisor’s hand as you say your goodbyes
Make sure your colors always bleed maize and blue
And take a big sip of some Ann Arbor brew
Then head to the Diag and skip over the M
Say thanks to the squirrels as they scurry to the Den
Take a walk by the Huron
Meet your friends in the Ugli
Sneak some food out the dining halls
Quote JFK smugly
The law quad is perfect for some quality pictures
At Charley’s you’ll surely find some top notch mixtures
So gather your blue books and your number 2 pencils
The Union’s got you covered for fun UMix late night specials
Check the tea out at Wisdom
And down at Tea Haus
Try the coffee at Amer’s
And Espresso Royale
Be jolly at Pumpkin
For a nice stout or pale ale
Run around the Arb
And pet the dogs at finals
Paint the rock at night
Play your hipster rock vinyls
Do trivia at Brown Jug
Or maybe someplace else
Find some chalk at Mash
Hunt fairy doors
Look for elves
Work hard all day
Then play hard at night
Dance ’til the morning
Skeeps, Rick’s, and Necto dim the light
Have an egg on your Frita
Walk barefoot in the fountain
Find your painting at UMMA
Trek off to North like it’s a mountain
Grab a book at the Dude, or maybe at Dawn Treader
Literati has coffee
And typewriters with letters
Act chic in the Ross garden still sunny in winter
Toast mason jars at Dom’s when the sun is a squinter
Spend a dollar on Ground Cover and help someone out
But check out The Daily for news without doubt
Remember orientation as you don your cap and gown
Think of it gratefully and don’t you dare frown
Theres another thing you really must do
And if you don’t, this day you’ll rue
Take hold of your tassle and move it side to side
While you’re at it tell Schlissel he’s a really great guy
The last thing to do is maybe most important
Remember the block ][v][
And say hello victors
Do the right thing
Shout Harbaugh’s name
As we all come together to cheer for this thing we call
the game, the game, the game
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Beat OSU!

525,600 Times I Listened to Musicals This Week

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A gif of Judy Garland and Fred Astaire dancing in Easter Parade.

Recently, I went to my friend’s house to help him set up for a party. He and his roommates were getting a little drowsy, so they put on their hype song. As they started belting out Wicked’s “Defying Gravity,” I realized just how much I missed listening to musicals. I wouldn’t exactly call them my “hype songs,” but they certainly have something to them that really gets me energized. I missed that. From the moment Elphaba picked up the tempo and hit those beautiful high notes we all know and love, I knew I was hooked. I found myself joining in, pretending I was a much better singer than I am, serenading my friend.

That night, I opened my computer and went straight to my musicals playlist. I turned up the volume to full blast, hit shuffle, and let the music begin. I sang and danced to myself until I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore. Then, I went to sleep with the sounds of Finding Neverland floating around my mind. When I woke up the next morning, I did it again.

And again.

And again.

Instead of jumping around to One Direction or Justin Bieber’s new albums, I listened to musicals all week. And I’m not even the slightest bit upset.

You see, there’s something very magical about putting on the soundtrack to your favorite musical. You can listen to a whole story in just one sitting. You can feel the ups and downs of the characters without even watching their motions. Musicals have the ability to just make you happy, and as my roommate puts it, “there’s something about singing along that’s different than singing along to normal music.” Who doesn’t want a change up every once in a while, anyway?

So whether you were first turned on to musicals watching Julie Andrews run down a hill with her arms outstretched, or Gene Kelly’s umbrella twirling and splashing got you on your feet, a musical has the ability to make a bad day better. There’s one out there for everyone, so go find the one that makes you smile and make it yours!

Adventures in Coloring

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Gif of a person coloring in a black and white coloring book with bright and vibrant colors.

This week, I decided to try out adult coloring books. No, these are not pornographic outlines ready to be filled in with a Crayola 64 pack. Instead, adult coloring books are intricately detailed black and white images that just happen to be the newest method of relieving stress. Yup, right up there with yoga and meditation, only significantly more fun. So, after class one day when I was feeling particularly bogged down by homework, I put my assignments aside and took out my brand new coloring book. Immediately, my childhood came rushing back to me, but I didn’t feel like a four-year-old. I remembered coloring with my mom and my grandma, my babysitters, my friends, but I was experiencing the act of coloring in a completely different, adult way. It was fantastic. I could feel the stress evaporating from my body.

All week I found myself telling people about my adventures in coloring. I urged them to follow my lead and even considered ripping pages out of my Lost Ocean coloring book to share with friends. But then, in the midst of one of my most spectacular encouragements, my friend warned me of the controversy surrounding adult coloring books. Controversy? I was utterly confused by the thought of it. She explained that many people view adult coloring books as a way to further infantilize adults, especially young adults in the millennial generation. Coloring books are seen as a crutch to keep people closer to their childhood so they take longer to “grow up” and therefore take longer to make “valuable contributions” to the community.

Well, as you can probably tell, I am in complete disagreement with these coloring disbelievers. Our values as a culture are changing. Nothing is as black and white as it was once perceived. Things like gender and sexuality, which were once considered completely binary, are no longer perceived that way. The world is leaning towards acceptance, although it’s a slow tilt, and that has opened up our world to more people and more ideas than ever before. Everything is changing. Why not embrace the change and accept the value of doing something as seemingly simple and creative as coloring? Just because a person takes the time to fill out a page in a coloring book doesn’t mean he or she is not taking the time to contribute to society in a valuable way. In fact, taking the time for ones self that coloring allows could give a person a chance to develop even better ways to contribute by opening up the creative side so many adults don’t have the opportunity to access in their nine-to-five jobs.

I asked my friends why they like to color and not a single one said it reminded them of childhood. One friend said, “I find it incredibly relaxing. Lots of things change, but coloring always feels the same. The important decisions during that time are what page to pick and whether to go with green or purple. It’s so simple!” Another friend said, “I like coloring because it makes me feel artistic when I’m not really.” In a world filled with constant complex choices and structure, why not take a moment to appreciate the simplicity and creativity of a coloring book?

Chasing the Northern Lights

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Moving image of the green and red northern lights over a lake and mountains.

This week, I went on a journey to find beauty in nature. I know it’s not actually that difficult to find, especially in Michigan, but I was looking for a new kind of beauty I’d never seen before. The kind of beauty that only comes in the darkest of nights under just the right conditions. You see, the sun was flaring up, and that meant there was an increased chance of seeing the aurora borealis across southeastern Michigan. And I was dying to see it.

I’ve wanted to see the northern lights for as long as I can remember. In pictures, they always look like someone found a giant paintbrush and made big sweeping brush strokes of blues and greens, and sometimes reds, across the black night sky canvas. I’ve never actually been fortunate enough to find the lights in person, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t tried. Repeatedly. And Monday night was no different.

So late that night, I piled into my friend’s car with three other girls and we headed north to chase the lights (our second official attempt as a group). Last time we drove until morning only to be severely disappointed by the lack of color in the sky, so this time we decided to cut ourselves off. We drove until one in the morning and spent our hours in the car wishing, praying, and hoping to see the lights. And I really thought we’d see them this time. The sky was crystal clear and even from the highway we could see light streaks of something we hadn’t seen before, which, of course, we assumed were the lights. We drove and drove, and yet, no aurora borealis. In fact, we hit clouds the further north we got. Discouraged, we turned around and drove back towards Ann Arbor.

But then, something magical happened. The clouds cleared and brilliant stars filled the night sky. A great big orange ball of a moon hung low on the horizon, covered by just enough clouds to create a mysteriously spooky masterpiece. Shooting stars skidded into view and out again. The sky was beautiful, just like that painting I had imagined, even without the northern lights. And even though we didn’t find the lights like I hoped we would, and even though my heart still aches for the moment when I can call my family and say I did, I am so happy for that journey. I got to see something just as beautiful and magnificent. I got to see the kind of pure night sky some people in big cities have only dreamed of. And I know I’ll find the lights one day. But for now, I’ll take the nights filled with surprising skies instead, because they’re just as good, if not better.